Amidst Destruction
by Onecanofsprite
Summary: "There is nothing left to lose for those who have lost everything." A post-apocalyptic tale set in Hoenn, following the tale of Ciaran, an ex-detective. Critique welcomed.
1. Chapter 1: A Reintroduction to Hoenn

Barely a sound could be heard for miles. All lay quiet in the region, as if it were meant to be that way. But to the few that wandered amongst the rubble, they all knew it was never meant to be like this. Who would have thought that within a month of Alice Kent reaching the top, and walking away, the entirety of Hoenn would be reduced to rubble and dust. Many lives were lost the day that a divine force struck the world, and to this date not many had figured where it had come from. Most of the survivors were still dedicating their time to their own survival, living off of what little there is. Pokemon in the region have presumed to face the same fate of the humans, though it is reported a number of them had fled the region moments before the destruction. But still, the same situation is with the humans: Amidst the wreckage, there are survivors...

This is where our protagonists and antagonists come into play. They are all survivors, who have either struggled to cope with the traumas they have faced before these events, or have much greater plans. The prologue to the story shall be split into four sections: each covering the main characters. Who will succeed and who shall fail in the second round of The Wizard's wicked game, nobody knows...

It was a dark and stormy night. One of which several heroes had been observing, across different universes. But in one place, something sinister was about to occur...

"Heh." A dark man said. He sat inside a dark room, where technology was thriving and seemingly controlled it. He faced a wall of monitors, of which he observed, an arrogant smirk occupying the lower half of his face. "Those fools have no idea of what is about to occur. This ignorance shall be my greatest drive towards victory." He leaned forwards, and laughed to himself. He stood up, and observed his cameras one more time, before heading to the window. His facility had remained relatively well preserved since the destruction, and it was from here he intended to rule over the wastelands and debris that still remained. After spending years upon years of meticulous planning trying to put his plan of global domination into fruition, the apocalypse had served to do nothing more then to remove potential defiances from the local area and lower the amount of people he would have. A lightening bolt struck from the skies, and it began to pour down with rain much heavier then the region of Hoenn had usually experienced. The land outside was soaked, mud quickly turning into hazards for any remaining survivors. The diabolical man in a black trench coat smiled at this. Whilst violence was not who he was, seeing others suffer before him had been one of his psychopathic pleasures. After his plan would succeed, this would become nothing more then leisure for him, and the whole universe would bow down before him. "No matter how they attempt to defy me, Magnus Viper, this world will learn its place. Everything is going exactly to plan."

His words seemed to echo throughout the world, as one particular survivor and her pokemon ran into a office block for shelter from the heavy rain. "I... shall become god."


	2. Chapter 2: A Ray of Hope

The small, dusty apartment room was illuminated by a strong ray of brightness coming from a lightening bolt. The light revealed the basic spartan nature of the room to eyesight, its shelves stripped bare of any ornaments or supplies. This basic life style was reflected in the bed, which wouldn't have looked out of place at a motel. Some of the springs had begun to fall out, and opposite it a wardrobe had large pieces of wood torn out from it. Within seconds of claiming the room as his own, Ciaran successfully deduced that this was because of the large meteorite that had ripped through the hotel during the apocalypse, the sheer force tearing off parts of the cupboard. It was a wonder the room was still standing, seeing as it was one of the only non-derelict rooms in the structure. Ciaran had chosen such a weird place to stay in so he could investigate the meteorite. Through his numerous studies he had found that there were no radioactive emissions, or anything out of the ordinary. He was disappointed, because he'd always wanted to have superpowers.

Sleeping on the old, worn out bed was the good detective himself. A rough stubble coated his chin, his white hair stretching almost to the point of covering his eyes. He wore a thin brown trench coat on top of his old detective's uniform, stained red in a few areas to designate that he had fought his share of battles to the death. It was unusual for a human to get close enough to him to stain his coat, since he was an excellent marksman with his revolver - Rather, it was the pokemon that gave him the hard time. Since the apocalypse had struck the local creatures had turned hostile to all humans for seemingly no reason. Why was this? Ciaran still did not know the answer, and was looking into it along with his other major question: Where are all the survivors?

In the 3 years since the meteorites destroyed Hoenn, Ciaran had only encountered other humans on 4 occasions - 3 of which were angry looters that attacked him on sight. The other wasn't really a meeting, but more of a sighting - At one point, he saw a glint at the top of a ruined petrol station. By the time he had ran up there, the figure had left the area, and he saw why they were there - they were shooting another survivor down the road. This unusual absence of other humans troubled the detective. It had severely hindered his investigations into what exactly went down when the region was turned to ash(he had been asleep the whole time), due to a total lack of witnesses.

One would be forgiven for thinking Ciaran was lying in bed, sound asleep. Quite the opposite, in fact: He was merely recollecting the facts he had uncovered yesterday. His pet Purrloin, Kat, had managed to find a bullet lodged into a wall, next to a corpse of a recently passed away survivor. While this definitely meant somebody hostile was out there, it was contact at the very least. With 6 months passing since his last conversation with anything human, he was desperate to find the source of the bullet. But where could he start?

Ciaran shook his head briefly, and jumped to his feet. He whistled his fingers, and Kat crawled out of the wardrobe opposite his bed. It let out a short cry, before Ciaran kneeled down to talk to her.

"Listen girl, we're gonna go out there and try an' find where that bullet came from, ok?" He said. His colleagues at work always used to mock him for picking a purrloin over something more common like a growlithe. But numerous times Kat had proved her usefulness in doing jobs others couldn't: If there were clues and items stuck in places inaccessible to humans and pokemon, she'd use her agility to reach it with ease. It didn't take a genius to guess who was laughing then. He strolled outside his room casually and took a short hop down a floor, breaking his fall with a forward roll. He chuckled slightly to himself, always preferring to use that self-taught maneuver then take the stairs. It was raining pretty heavily outside, so he opened his trench coat up a bit so Kat could walk under the cover of it. He put on his vintage trilby before stepping outside into the rain.

Two hours passed, and the clock finally struck twelve. Ciaran full well knew these were the danger hours, where he was most likely to be spotted by wild pokemon and not know that they were there. As good as his perception was, he couldn't hit what wasn't there. However, Kat took attention to something lying under the rubble. Her master immediately started to move the wreckage, anticipating a valuable clue or at least a sign post as to whether he had been searching the right area. Instead, all he found a flashlight. He sighed, disappointed with his find.

"Well, I suppose it'll be useful when my other one runs out." He mumbled to himself. He was just about to stand up when a blinding flash of light lit up the entire area. At first, he thought it was a lightening bolt that had gotten just a little too close for comfort. But when the light remained for a few seconds, and he turned around, he saw that this was not the case. "What... the... hell?"

The entire office building behind him, HP Limited, was now shining brighter then a dozen floodlights. This may of been because his eyes had become accustomed to the eternal darkness he faced, but the fact still stood: Somebody had managed to restore power to the block! But then a large bang echoed throughout the area, and just as quickly as the light appeared, it faded again. Ciaran was awestruck at the event that had occurred. He slowly walked towards the building, though common sense telled him to move quickly, since he was still being soaked with rain.

_Just who was it that tried to light up the office block?_ Ciaran scrawled in his notebook. And that was all he could think about.


	3. Chapter 3: Welcome to the family

Everything in the warehouse had returned to its pitch-black state. Ciaran shone his flashlight inside the rooms, seeing nothing but a few pieces of paper strewn across the floor, and typical office cubicles that wouldn't look so out of place with their stereotypes: Bland, despressing, and even smaller then a prison cell. He picked up his memo recorder, which he used at times when he just couldn't afford to waste seconds writing. He moved on, slowly muttering "An office block just lit up with a blinding light. Who - or rather, what - caused that light? The office itself is still as bland as one would expect, and no signs of obvious life can be seen-"

His train of thought was interrupted by what he almost swore looked like a shadow shooting through the light. It was larger then most normal pokemon, but it certainly wasn't a human; it was running on its all-fours. The detective nervously continued his recording, his hand shaking. "I-I just saw a large shadow move through the light. I'm going in to investigate further..."

The double doors to the entrance hall creaked open slowly, and the outline of his trilby poked inside. His face was winced, almost as if he expected to be pounced on by a werewolf and mauled right there and then. Despite how brave he usually was in the face of danger, Ciaran had a massive fear of unknown threats - the additional possibility of the darkness cloaking it, as it stalked its prey absolutely terrifying him. He flicked on his flashlight, and in a case of paranoia brought out the one he had found outside and turned it on too. His revolver lay comfortably in its holster by his waist, and the fact that both his hands were occupied by the lights was no further comfort in the case of being attacked. He slowly progressed through the entrance, at times spinning around to check nothing was creeping up on him.

Over the next terrifying 10 minutes, he had been subconsciously following the path with the open doors and signs of irregularity - Which was a stupid idea in his mind, because that might just lead him to whatever was stalking the building. He had been incredibly un-nerved, too, as a piece of paper that had fell down in front of him earlier had nearly given the poor cop a heart attack. His natural sense of paranoia and the off perception that somebody was following him seemed to become more ominous and imposing the higher up the building he got. It was hard to tell many of the floors apart because of how bland everything was, and how dark it also was. But the further up he went, he also found what he believed could be traces of life: Odd equipment that wouldn't be found in an office, even the odd traces of food and packaging. On the fourth and final floor, it was much the same as the rest of the offices, except for one thing: This floor had definitive proof that somebody was living here. He found sleeping bags on the floor as well as numerous amounts of supplies; everything somebody would need to be independant in a worst case scenario for months on end. Ciaran quickly looked around.

"Hello?" He yelled out. Nothing shifted, nor moved. He had every right to believe he was still alone. _"Well, if nobody's here, I guess they can't tell me not to help myself," _He thought, picking up a few snack bars and putting them in his jacket. Kat, who he had all but forgotten about, pushed herself against his legs, almost frightened by another presence. "Guess there's nothing here after all, huh Kat? Unless they're all hiding in the CEO's office."

Ciaran's mind had become a conflict between two thoughts: A) GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE B) Look for survivors. Rather stupidly he chose the latter option, against his own common sense (And, from what he gathered, Kat's as well). He slowly crept along the top floor to the CEO's office, and put a flashlight away. Drawing his revolver slowly, he violently kicked the door open, which was not actually shut, but rather pulled to. This made him stumble forwards, and what he saw shocked him to the core. The flashlight illuminated small blood pools on the floor, and when he pulled his hand up, he saw a rather lanky hooded figure slumped against the CEO's desk. His expression was shocked, in his hands lay a flashlight too, and his head was propped up to face the door, almost as if he were alive. Ciaran knelt down for a moment, inspecting the body. The cause of death appeared to be a gunshot to the heart. But the precision of the shot was absolutely incredible: It was either the biggest trick shot he'd ever seen, or the killer had intentionally hit the man right square in the heart. He was mortified by the death, but also by the possibility that the crawling shadow may actually have been a human. He slowly began to back up, and spun around. Right into a shadowy figure.

"Someone's being a baaaaaad boy." It whispered menacingly.

"!" Ciaran screamed, hitting the person in the face with the butt of his gun. Still screaming, he shoved them back out of the office with both palms, and immeadiately began to sprint, suddenly noticing that Kat had disappeared. Before he could ponder her whereabouts, the killer was chasing him again, and even more horrifyingly, rows of lockers at the other end of the room were falling down randomnly. He sprinted faster towards the stair cases, screaming ever louder. One would be forgiven for mistaking that this was a hardened detective that was doing the running. But he was going too fast to see the shadow he had spotted outside move into position. He tripped over it, and went flying into the wall it moved in front of. Recoiling from the collision on the floor, he turned himself over and drew his revolver, aiming at the shadows moving towards him. "Gah! Stay away from me!"

The humanoid figure approached him, at last illuminated by Ciaran's torch light. It was an average sized girl, about 21 years old. She wore a black tank top and jeans, which were a bit too small for her. She had almost ludicrously long black hair, stretching down to her thighs, where she holstered two 9mm Pistols in place of her pockets. Her face was simple but stunning; her light blue eyes contradicting the rest of her appearance. She seemed less threatening then she did seem emotionless but attractive; two things which contradicted her. For a moment, Ciaran was stunned by her appearance, the only thing he could hear himself thinking being _"God DAMN!"._ Then he realised she was probably trying to kill him, and raised his revolver again. She crouched down in front of him and smirked calmly.

"Oh, please. You're going to try and kill me with that?"

"You... you murdered that man, didn't you? Why?"

"Murderer? Aha! Please, for a police officer you're awfully naive to believe that. I think we've got off to a wrong start, don't you?"

"No, I don't think that! You've been stalking me throughout this building, waiting to kill me in the office next to the other body! Why?"

"What? Look pally, just because I shot one guy doesn't mean I kill every single damn person in the world. The fact that you were in there when I arrived is mere coincidence. Remember the power turning on and off, if that's what brought you here? That was me. I went down to the basement to repair the damn power supply."

"And why should I believe that? Why do you want power to this dingy old office block, anyways? And how do you explain the dead guy?"

"Why do I want power? Silly man, isn't that obvious? I live here all the time. I have to: I'm a mercenary. It wouldn't be much use to people if I kept moving the whole time, would it? Besides, there's two ways to turn on the office block power: The CEO's office, and the Maintenance room. And the one in the maintenance room is broken, meaning I have to go all the way through this damn place whenever the power goes out."

"Merc? You're a MERC? Lady, there's an apocalypse going on, in case you didn't know. Who would want somebody dead at this time?"

"You'd be surprised. Look, unless you have anymore questions, I'm going to turn the lights on." And with that, she disappeared into the darkness. The other shadow that Ciaran had been so frightened of before was standing next to him, practically towering over him. To his surprise, it began to talk to him.

"Listen, you. We'll start from square one and drop these hostilities if you do one thing..." He mumbled, as the lights slowly flickered on. The figure that was talking to him was none other then an Arcanine, looking every bit as fearsome as the one Ciaran's boss owned. He turned his head towards an aisle, where Kat was batting at a Ninetales playfully. "Tell that kid to calm down and leave her alone, okay?"

The mercenary saw the scene and laughed. "Heh. Welcome to the family, you two." She turned to face Ciaran, who brushed off some dust and stood up to face her.

"Okay... let's try this again. Why did you kill that man?" He questioned for a third time. The merc rolled her eyes and sighed, before picking up a golden pocket watch from on top of a water cooler and throwing it to him.

"Why don't you see for yourself? Spin the dial back... 15 minutes. That'll answer your questions about his death. By the way, the name's Alice. Alice Kent."

Ciaran inspected the watch's surface. Nothing seemed out of ordinary, until he opened it. There was a small dial on it, with a digital display saying '0 MINUTES'. He carefully twisted the dial clockwise, being cautious not to damage it. "Ok, now what?"

"Hit the button at the bottom. Have fun."

And with a press of a button, Ciaran was enveloped in a blue light, but not before Alice's name clicked in his mind. "Wait a second, I know you! You're the-" But then it flashed off, and he disappeared from the room. Alice sighed and removed her 'Tough Girl' facade, and kneeled down, stroking her Arcanine.

"Why is every single survivor I meet that I DON'T have to kill so paranoid?"


	4. Chapter 4: 4 minutes before death

**This chapter in the perspective of Ciaran!**

So here I was, travelling back through time on request of somebody who I'd never even met before. Ok, that's a lie. I know who she is. I have met Alice before, as well. But there's one though that just keeps cropping up in my mind: "Who IS this girl?". Because there's one thing I have known for sure, a fact that shocks me even to be standing in front of her:

**Alice Kent is supposed to be dead.**

Shocking, I know. It doesn't make sense. This entire encounter doesn't make sense. I remember the events confirming this like they were yesterday. I was sitting at the work break room with my colleague, Harry. He'd been watching this girl, Alice Kent's, movements since she beat her first gym in Rustboro. The old break room was filled with the smell of cigarette smoke, almost all of it from Harry. He leaned back on the sofa, elbowing me in the ribs, and pointing at the TV screen. I tilted my head up from my book to see a young girl, around my age (18), commanding a team of pokemon. This is where it got confusing, and why she is so burnt into my mind...

3 YEARS AGO, HOENN ELITE 4

Alice fearlessly looked up at Wallace. 2 pokemon were down, whom she had returned to their pokeballs: Her Swellow, and a Hariyama. It was Wallace's last pokemon, his feared Milotic, against Alice's most trusted Absol, Kristy. She had been whittling down its health for ages, but every time the milotic recovered itself and carried on fighting. The situation was becoming helpless, with Alice running out of Full restores to keep Kristy in the fight. If this carried on, Alice would lose. Everything she had fought so hard for would be over in a flash. Kristy turned to her slowly, and made a small cry.

"Kristy... no! I... I won't let you!" Alice said, tears beginning to stream down her face. Wallace seemed confused at this interaction, almost as if Alice and her absol were conversing. Eventually, Alice turned away from her Absol. "Kristy... use Destiny Bond..."

The fight was over with a blur. Both the milotic and the absol fell at the same time, and Alice still faced away. Wallace smiled charismatically.

"Baby, are you okay? Your pokemon isn't dead, you know, darling. It's just fainted. This is just a game." But his smile faded when Alice turned around, and her mental condition had deteriorated into a full-on sob. Wallace nervously pointed to the Hall of Fame. "You... you can go register your pokemon as winners. Come on, it's not that bad!"

Alice finally spoke after a minute of coaxing. "Just a game... yeah... this was just a game, wasn't it? Nobody... nobody's died for real, have they? This... this is just my imagination..."

"Huh?"

"Just... just leave me alone. If you want to understand... see for yourself..." And with that Alice rolled the two pokeballs of her Swellow and Hariyama to the Absol. She ran out crying, leaving a confused Wallace, Elite 4, and TV Crew behind. The camera man shrugged at Wallace, who slowly walked forwards, and checked the absol. He jumped back, looking like he was going to scream.

"Cut the camera." He whispered. The TV Crew looked unsure. "NOW!" They jumped into action, shutting everything off. Sidney walked in front of the camera.

"What's wrong, man?" Sidney asked Wallace, who didn't look at him.

"It's... It's... dead!" Wallace cried out. The shock of his transferred through every single other person there. He scrambled forwards, and opened the the other two pokeballs. The Hariyama and Swellow also fell out, and just like the Absol, they were lifeless. The entire audience stared at each other, dumbfounded and confused. One man, a chief police officer who was recording this on his phone, could only bring himself to mutter the words:

"...My god..."

**1 DAY LATER**

I stood in my kitchen, drinking a freshly made cup of tea. Skimmed milk, 2 sugars, as usual. I was still trying to get over his confusion from the day before. _How could a pokemon die like that? It's... not possible._ I thought to myself. I hadn't been paying attention to the news, which suddenly blared the big Line dropper:

"The new champion - DEAD! Alice Kent found in her apartment dead, and only 1 of her surviving pokemon found in her room, her Ninetales. More in a few minutes."

"WHAT?" I burst out, in disbelief. I put down my tea as not to spill it over my kitchen surface. "HER TOO? WHAT THE HELL?"

The minutes surrounding me waiting for the news report felt like an eternity. But, at last, I got the information.

"Just a day after her victory with tragic consequences, Alice Kent has been found dead in her appartment. Alarm was raised by her Ninetales reportedly crying "Louder than anything I've ever heard before", a neighbor commented. Her Ninetales was the only pokemon still on her - the other 2 'surviving' members, her Beautifly and her Ludicolo, were nowhere to be found. No causes of physical violence had been found on her, and police are treating this as "either a suicide, or a rare case of death from a broken heart". Either way, much is unclear about how this star, this hero, that persevered through the risks of all of her pokemon - which she had cherished and protected - from dying, has suddenly died the next day."

**PRESENT DAY (OR NOT)**

I was a young detective, rising through the ranks rapidly. Of course, I was the one sent to investigate her death - and I found nothing. And the lads at the morgue agreed with me, saying it was almost as if she had dropped dead on the spot. So why, now of all times, has she returned from the dead, and somehow traced her ninetales? Yeah, that was the Ninetales she had used during the Elite 4, no doubt about it - she gave it a special collar before the final challenge, I was told. And that Ninetales was definitely wearing it. But as soon as I finished thinking about this, I had arrived at my 'destination' - 2 minutes before the hooded man's death.

I found myself swimming in complete darkness again, just like before. A small torchlight was beaming across the room, and the hooded man, who was about 26, was searching the area. He pulled out a piece of paper, to which I walked over and read.

"Alice Kent, 21 - Last sighted in Office Block of HP Limited.

P.S: Don't fall for her charms."

_Well well well, looks like somebody has a reputation._ I thought to myself, smiling. The man kept on walking, and entered the CEO's office. He picked up a few pieces of paper and started reading them. When I checked them, nothing out of the ordinary - A few documents on how to power up the office's generator. _Guess Alice was telling the truth about the power, then._ And then he jumped back at the sight of another sheet. 'Hitlist' was its name, which had several people's names I had never heard of on it, all scratched out with 'PAID' next to them - bar one. Then, a click of a gun sounded, and the man spun around.

"Oh... eh... Hey! You must be... uh... Alice!" The guy said, who had completely failed to resist staring at her figure. She smiled, and pointed a gun at him. Specifcally, a 10mm pistol, larger then the ones she normally used.

"Convenient. Not only is my new target trying to kill me, he's also come straight to me. Thanks for saving me some trouble, but there's nothing in the way of a reward for that. Bye." She said, almost sadistically, as he began to panic.

*BANG*

The next moment happened in slow motion. The body was flung backwards, sliding across the floor and hitting the desk, creating a trail of blood. Alice put the gun to the side, and brought out a small camera from her pocket.

"Smile!" She said jokingly, before taking a photo. _Damn, is this girl psychotic or something? This isn't the Alice Kent I remember from all those years ago..._

I was about to leave, when Alice went behind the CEO's desk, and hit a switch, causing all the lights in the block to turn on, just as I remembered, and then blow out.

"Aww, damn it!"

Her ninetales walked in to the room. There was the collar her one at the E4 was wearing! "What happened now, Alice?" It said to her softly. I couldn't believe it. ANOTHER pokemon that could talk! _What? How?_

"Oh, it's nothing Ashley. Blasted circuits are on the fritz again. We've gotta head back down to the generator and fix it. Again."

The tough looking arcanine walked in after hearing this. "And why exactly did we choose to hide in this place, again?"

"It's a big place, Jack. Sure, people can find us easily - but they're not so good in the darkness, are they?" Alice replied confidently.

"Sure, sure, you've said that before. I just can't stand half of this 'sneaking up on people' thing when they try and attack you. It's too dangerous."

"And I suppose running in the open at them isn't?" Ashley giggled, leaning on Jack slightly. Jack shook her off.

"Yeah, yeah, knock it off. Let's fix this damn thing already." Jack said, leaving the room before the other two did. Ashley and Alice exchanged smiles, before following him.

Well, it certainly answered a few questions of mine. And brought up a shit ton more. Time to go back to the present, I guess, and get some damn answers. I hope. Particularly, the biggest question I know:

Could this girl really be Alice Kent? She seems like a sociopath at times... and then a caring trainer immediately afterwards. Did the events at the E4 traumatise her that much?

And how is she even alive? She's DEAD. The best doctors in the region confirmed that. And yet, there she was, a completely changed individual. This is starting to make less sense then I thought it would. And with that, I hit the button on the stopwatch, and teleported away again.


	5. Chapter 5: Answers

Nothing much had changed in Ciaran's absence, which was barely a few minutes to the real world. Alice was waiting by a recently-boiled kettle, pouring the contents into a large flask. Kat had stopped playing with Ashley and was lying on one of the office dividers, sleeping. Ashley kept watching her, lying next to Jack, who was asleep peacefully. Alice checked her watch watch quickly, tutting.

"Come ooon, Ciaran. It never takes that long to time travel." She moaned, putting the kettle back down, tapping her foot. As soon as this was done, a flash of light brought him tumbling back face first into reality. Luckily, he forward rolled to break his fall.

"Man, I'm never gonna get used to that fall." He joked. He was a lot happier now that he could trust Alice. He lightly tossed the pocket watch back to her, and put on a serious tone. "Well, your story certainly matches up. But I've got a few questions to ask, if you don't mind."

Alice rolled her eyes, before sighing. "Go ahead, then, inspector. Just don't expect me to answer all of them." Ciaran nodded at this.

"Right. Well, obviously, there's the question that has had me confused since I met you." He pointed at Ashley and Jack quickly, before turning back. "Why can they talk?"

Alice let out another deep breath, as if she was answering the same question for the thousandth time. "...I don't know, ok? It's just something my pokemon seem to be able to do. They always have."

_So that's why she was talking to Kristy in the final battle... _Ciaran pondered. He shook himself out of it, and began the next question. "So... you're really Alice Kent?"

"Well, yeah. Do I LOOK like Alice Kent to you?" Alice answered rhetorically. Ciaran showed signs of protest. "Yes, I know, I'm supposed to be dead. That took Ashley a while to get through..." Ashley raised her head at the mention of this and smiled faintly. "But I don't really know, nor would I share that with you for a reason."

Ciaran was dismayed by the responses. "Ok... on that list of your targets, why are all but one of them marked 'PAID'?"

"One of the clients ordered me to kill somebody else. Don't remember his name, but he was pretty shady. I'm meeting him for the money later."

"Lastly... what happened to the other 2 pokemon you beat the Elite Four with? Ashley is the only remaining member of that team. According to what I know, you should also have a Beautifly and a Ludicolo."

Alice lowered her head, before spinning around and walking to the office counter. "That's something I'm not obliged to tell you. Are you done with the questions? I'd like to get to know you a bit more, seeing as there aren't that many people left anymore. I don't really get any con-"

Alice was interrupted by a mobile phone ringing. She gave the motion 'One second', and answered the phone.

"Hey Alice, is it alright If I-" A rather heroic, strong voice said on the other end of the phone.

"Not right now, Mike!" She snapped, before ending the call. She faced Ciaran again. "Ok, forget that. Tea?" She raised the large flask of tea to Ciaran. "You're probably thirsty, right?"

"Cheers. Man, come to think of it, Time travel really takes it out of you, huh? Guess that stops it being too casual." He took the flask and had a quick sip, examining the taste. Much to Alice's surprise, he then kicked his head back and downed the rest of the flask in one go. He slammed it down on the counter, his face going with it. He snapped his head back up and grinned. "Tastes great!" To which Alice smiled weakly, her expression almost begging for an answer. "Heh. Me and the lads at the office were gonna have a water drinking championship: See how long it took us to drink a whole jug of water. I'd been practicing, you see."

"Practicing or not... THAT TEA WAS BOILING HOT!" Alice yelled in surprise. Jack woke up at this, jerking his head to see what the commotion was about. Alice and Ciaran continued their conversation for a while, mainly discussing unimportant, vague topics, until the subject of Ciaran being a detective was brought up. "So, you're an inspector, right? Let's see if you can judge my appearance then."

_Uh... I'm not entirely sure what she means by this..._ Ciaran thought nervously. He didn't want to take this the wrong way, but he also didn't want to look like a total fool. "Okay, uhh... You seem to be well-maintained, even at this time, so I'm guessing you've got hygenic facilities running in here too. You've got some weird patches on your clothes which look like they've been gradually pushed out... so clearly you were stuff underneath it from time to time. Judging by your face... I'd say you're about... 21 years old?" Alice took the last comment humorously and offensively, delivering a swift knee below the belt. Ciaran crumpled to the floor in pain. "Yeah... I take that as correct to the very last detail..."

After he recovered, still in pain, he used the counter as support. "So... who was that 'Mike' guy, anyways?" Ciaran asked. Again, Alice's phone started blaring. She angrily picked it up.

"FUCK OFF, MIKE!" She yelled, practically throwing the phone back into her pocket.

"Yeah... that Mike."

"Oh, he's a bit unusual. You'll see when he gets here in a minute or too."

"Wait, he's coming here?"

"Yeah, and a few others as well."

"..." Ciaran was speechless, before falling to his knees and holding his head. "GOD DAMN IT, I'M MEETING MORE PEOPLE TODAY THEN I HAVE IN 3 FREAKING YEARS!"


	6. Chapter 6: Combat Fatigue

Ciaran checked his watch impatiently. 11:15 AM, and an hour had passed slowly. He pushed his legs on a counter to make his computer chair he was sitting on spin slightly anti-clockwise. He sighed, and placed his head against the seat tiredly.

"So... when are these friends of yours gonna show up?" He said frustratedly. Alice tapped her foot, wondering what was taking her friends so long to show up.

"I don't know, ok? Mike doesn't usually take this long to show up, and Dixon's not that far away from here..." Alice moved across the large floor and stared out the window, in a vain attempt to see them outside. Ashley and Jake, who had been whispering quietly, walked towards the door. Ashley spoke out after she turned around to face Alice once more.

"Alice, Jake and I are just going to head out for a bit, ok?" She said innocently. Alice darted her eyes back to them hesitantly, before nodding her head.

"Ok. Just... be careful, ok?" Alice muttered. They heard her though, and slowly walked out of the room, and the feint echoes of them walking down the stairs could be heard for several seconds until they suddenly stopped. Alice observed them walking out of the building and across the street, before turning to Ciaran.

"You just let them out like that?" Ciaran questioned, wondering what her morals were, since she was so protective of them normally.

"Not usually, but then again, they don't usually want to go out by themselves. Jake can look after himself, and he cares a lot about Ashley. I just hope they'll be fine."

"Yeah, well we know what happens when people start getting complacent about 'What could possibly go wrong' situations, huh? I 'spose it's fair enough to be concerned. Actually, this has raised a question: Why does Jake care for Ashley so much? He doesn't seem like the kind of 'Lady's Guy' to me."

"I don't know. He always keeps quiet about it if I ever ask him. I don't think even Ashley knows..."

"Well, it wouldn't exactly take someone like me to notice that he's hiding something then, right?"

"Yeah. The only question is..."

"...what is he hiding." Ciaran twiddled his fingers slightly, looking around the room. He was looking for something to talk about. "So... ever had to get up close with one of your targets, Alice? Mano-a-Womano?"

"Nope. Guess I've just been lucky, though. I've trained myself for the situation, but it doesn't seem like I'll need to do something like that much."

"You practice a lot, then?"

"If that's a fight request, then consider your challenge accepted." Alice said, smiling. Ciaran chuckled.

"Well, this'll be interesting, I guess." Ciaran said, clicking his knuckles. Alice walked over to one of the cubicles, and ducked down for a bit. A few seconds later she re-emerged excitedly, procuring a set of boxing gloves. "What are those for, then?"

"So I don't break you _too_ hard. That wouldn't be great for either of us now, would it?" She said, strapping the gloves on. She hit them together lightly, and clenched her fists to a defensive position just below her eyes. She jabbed playfully, before walking to Ciaran in a fighting stance, where she tilted her body sideways at a 60 degree angle, which quickly covered most of her vulnerable areas. Ciaran quickly copied her stance, which was remarkably similar to how he was taught.

"Don't hold back!" Ciaran said, swinging over-head wildly. Much as he expected, Alice caught it in motion. Just what he had wanted. He pushed his hand back of her palm, which she still held, and used his strength to move it down in a semi-circular fashion fast enough to pull Alice down with it. She was forced to let go and spin away as to avoid being left defenceless.

"Not bad. I didn't think they taught that move to the force." Alice complemented.

"They don't, I just made the damn thing up on the spot." Ciaran laughed, before sliding into a left undercut jab, which hit Alice square in the stomach, forcing her to stumble forwards. He sweeped her with his right foot and backed off, as he wasn't the kind of person to go punching someone on the ground in a 'friendly' fight. Alice was back up on her feet in seconds, ready to fight again. "Jeez, throw a punch, would you? I didn't think it'd be this easy..."

"Fine, if you want me to." Alice said happily. She swung with a right hook, which Ciaran easily blocked and followed up with a right jab to the face. Alice was knocked back, stunned. Tears streamed from her eyes. "AH! Shit, that hurt Ciaran!" Ciaran instantly suffered a guilt trip, and ran towards her to check that she was all right.

"Oh, jeez. Look, I didn't mean to hit tha-" He put his arm on her shoulder, but by the time he realised Alice's ploy, it was too late.

"Out of luck!" Alice yelled, jabbing Ciaran's knee with her foot sharply. "I can see through that!" She said playfully, jabbing Ciaran countless times with her right fist, fast and powerful enough as to which Ciaran could not block. He spun around a jumped away from Alice. Whilst his back was still turned in fear, Alice entered a crouching position, and lept up at him, "Aww, don't go!" She shoved him forwards, and roundhouse kicked him to spin him around. Whilst he was dazed, and facing her, she jumped forwards again, throwing her left hand down on his face, throwing both of them into the ground.

"ALRIGHT ALRIGHT, YOU WIN DAMN IT!" Ciaran yelled out in protest, pinned down on the ground. Alice was kneeling over him, smiling. "Jesus christ, you really don't fight nicely, do you?"

"You must have forgotten who I am, Ciaran. Girls like me don't play nice." Alice laughed. She was alerted by somebody else's presence in the room.

"Uh... I hope I'm not interrupting anything, Alice." A caped man said. He was wearing a red and black mask, and a red t-shirt and trousers, whilst his cape was also black. He looked rather silly for an ordinary person, what with his t-shirt having a 'HH' logo emblazoned on it. His voice was strong and confident, much like his appearance. Alice jumped up and walked away slightly from Ciaran.

"Huh? Oh, no, not at all. I was just sparring with Ciaran." She said nervously, holding her hand out for Ciaran to grab on to. He did so and brought himself to his feet.

"Yeah... it totally looked like that from where I was standing. Anyways, Dixon's been sidetracked. Just spent the last 45 minutes looking for him, but I haven't found him. He'll show up later, though." The masked man said.

"Sorry to ask... but who are you?" Ciaran asked. The man fell back in embarrassment as if he had been shot.

"What? You don't know me? The Saviour of Society? The People's Protector? Surely you have heard tales of ME! I am the Hoenn Hero!" He yelled magnificently, pointing the logo on his shirt.

"No. No I haven't. As far as I know we've never had nor need a clown around here, buddy."

"Clown? Surely you jest. I'm a hero, Ciaran! The kind that goes around saving people!"

"Whoa! You're a real hero? For REAL?" Ciaran snapped sarcastically. Alice turned to him angrily.

"Ciaran, cut it out! It's Mike, and yes he is a super hero."

"Yes, indeed Alice. Now, I imagine you're confused about this, then." Mike said surprisingly calmly.

"Where the heck do I start?" Ciaran muttered, facing away from the hero. [i]This just gets stranger and stranger...[/i


	7. Chapter 7: Alliance

For the last 15 minutes, it had been pouring down with rain outside, soaking the dark city that the protagonists survived in. The pavement was soaked, and many of the small craters and other gaps that had been created when the now ruined city had been destroyed were filled with rain water. Occasionally, a piece of rubble would fall from a building in the distance, disturbing the otherwise peaceful quiet the town had been embracing. But nothing that was in the town was exactly peaceful anymore, a danger Jake and Ashley knew far too well. They had silently been tredding these streets, being careful to stay out of sight of any potential dangers.

"Jake, why did you ask me to come out here with you, anyways? Isn't it a bit... dangerous?" Ashley asked quietly, as calm as she always had been. Jake didn't face her, but they kept walking.

"There's something important I have to show you, Ashley. I found it in a parcel addressed to Alice a few days ago, right in some poor son of a gun's hand. I just hope it's still there." He muttered. Whilst he wasn't turning his head, he was observing the shadows across the street. Something had caught his attention, but what it was was unclear to Ashley. He stopped for a second, and pushed her towards an alleyway slightly with his back right paw. "Head through there." He whispered sternly, keeping themselves to the darkness.

"What's wrong, Jake?" Ashley asked, worried. "Surely the other pokemon will leave us alone, right?"

"I hope so, and they should leave _me_ alone. But I don't wanna push my luck with those guys. They weren't exactly the kind of people that'll be nice to _you_." Ashley audibly whimpered at this. "Come on, let's press on, in case they did notice y-" He stopped dead in his tracks, and Ashley turned around to face him.

"What's wrong?" She asked, as he faced a pile of wreckage.

"There it is. I swear it was further along then this. Shit, did somebody take it?" Jake muttered, battering a cardboard pallet out of the way. Ashley froze still as the stuff he moved produced larger amounts of noise. Almost as if it was meant to do that.

"Jake, keep the noise down!" She whispered, panicked and backing against the wall of the alley. She observed him pull out a cardboard box with his teeth, and knock it over. It had several bite marks from where he had torn in previously, and inside lay a necklace and a note. On the necklace lay a golden thunderbolt charm, barely 3 centimetres in diametre. "That's pretty small for a necklace. Looks like it's made of pure 24-carat gold, though. Whoever bought that for her must have been really rich. What's the note say?"

"How am I supposed to know? I can't read." Jake retorted. He picked the necklace up with his head and hung it around Ashley's neck. "Heh. You look good with that on you."

"Thanks." Ashley said, giving off a smile to Jake. But that smile faded when she looked past Jake, and at the group of shadows blocking the entrance to the street. "Uh, Jake?"

"Hmph. So you guys were the ones that put all this crap on the box, huh?" Jake mumbled, facing the group of other pokemon. It was a group of 4, consisting of an Arbok, Machoke, Nidoking, and a Blaziken.

"Stereotypical 'tough pokemon'. I should have known..." Ashley muttered. The Blaziken chuckled at this.

"You've been running around our territory for far too long, Jake. What is this, the fifth time we've seen you at it? Clearly, we need to give you a better warning." The Nidoking said arrogantly. The Machoke clicked his knuckles, clearly awaiting the sadistic beating he was going to give.

"Or you can hand your pretty lady over, if you'd rather not!" He laughed. His laughter soon turned to slight uncertainty, when Jake gritted his teeth and began to snarl heavily.

"You even lay a fucking finger on her, and your throat ends up in the gutter." Jake growled, his voice seething just below a furious anger.

"Big words, huh, punk? You're gonna regret this in the morning!" The Nidoking bellowed, starting to charge forwards. But a glint of light behind him was all it took to freeze him in his steps, as a commanding voice, sounding young, yelled out:

"Now, Serperior! Steam Tackle them! TAKE DOOOOOOWWWWNNNN!" It yelled with a large ham in its voice. As he commanded, a Serperior came charging straight from the darkness behind the group. Jake ran backwards and threw him and Ashley out of the way, as the beast soared through the alley, taking all of the other pokemon with it. "BOOYAHHH!" The voice screeched. A young kid wearing a blue hoodie, a huge waist belt filled with poke balls, and a large backpack dashed forwards happily, recalling his Serperior. "Hey, Jake! I thought you'd be getting into some more trouble around here!"

"Dixon? What are you doing here?" Ashley said, unable to move with Jake lying on top of her, but content enough just to sit there. "You should be heading to where Alice is!"

"Yeah, well, I snuck off when 'The Hoenn Hero'(He's a loser, y'know) wasn't looking and thought it'd be nice to catch up with you guys, and do some exploring. Besides, it turned out all right, didn't it?" He said, beaming a smile at Ashley.

"I... AM NOT YET BEATEN!" A voice yelled, tearing everyone's attention to it. The Blaziken still stood up, one of it's legs limp. His eyes glowed red with rage. "NOT TODAY!"

Dixon began to prepare a pokeball, and started backing up, whilst swinging it for a good throw, when the clicks of guns could be heard directly above them, on top of the two flats. He could see nothing but white, grinning teeth. "Now what?"

"SUPERRRR LEGENDAARRRYYY!" It said, diving backwards from on top of the buildings into the shadows. Bullets rang out from everywhere in the corner, firing twice at once, riddling the awe-struck Blaziken's chest with bullets, before eventually shooting him in the face multiple times. "OH YEAH, I F#&ED YOU UP!" The voice said, moving towards the others. "But let's stay formal, huh? Here lies F#& face, professor of stu-"

He was interrupted by a large metal clang. The shadowy figure winced backwards in pain. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed, falling forwards, revealing it was nothing more then a Lucario with a bear trap stuck on his foot. "WHAT THE F%$£? WHAT THE F)*| IS THIS? OWWW!" For a second, the others were less concerned about his left leg, but more about how on earth a pokemon was able to operate guns. The pokemon flopped his hands forwards towards them. "Don't just stand there, $$hats! Help me out, dang it!"

Or rather, his robotic hands. Dixon had no question about it: Somehow, he Lucario had obtained bionic hands, yet retained those spikes on them that were essential... for something. Nevertheless, Dixon sprinted forwards to help the 'poor' thing, and within seconds the trap was pryed off. "Man, where do I get one of those? IT'S AWESOME!"

Dixon prepped an empty pokeball. "On second thoughts, maybe I should have kept you in the trap for a moment longer." But the Lucario just sneered at the device.

"Oh, please. I'm waaay too awesome for one of those, kid. Eh, I'm hungry. You got anything to eat?" He quickly changed topics along with directions frequently. Crouching down to the pile consisting of Jake and Ashley. "And who's this pretty girl, too?"

"Back off, bub." Jake growled, hopping off of Ashley. "Stay away from her, okay?"

"Sure. But my name's not 'bub'." The Lucario said. He'd have held his chest at this point if he didn't still have a large spike there. "The names Vane. Vane Dennis. And they said a pokemon could never use a gun... heh. Anyways, you got anything to eat, or not?"

"Not on me, no. I can show you some other people that do, though. A Super Hero and a freakin' hot chick that also happens to be a merc shouldn't be too far away from here."

"Hot, you say?" Vane said, raising his eyebrows in interest.

"Uhh... yeah... I don't think she'll take too kindly if you try to make advances to her. She does kinda... kill people. For money."

"So do I. Doesn't matter! Let's go, then. Lead the way, tour guide!"


	8. Chapter 8: Regroup

It had been at least half an hour now since Mike had arrived. Alice had left the room, claiming she needed to make a phone call. Ciaran hadn't gotten any useful answers from Mike, and had begun to repeat his questions in the hope this vigilante might slip something.

"So... tell me how you got the title 'Hoenn Hero', again?" He said, tired and confused. Ciaran just wanted to sleep the whole issue away, and so did Alice.

"Well, soldier, do you see any other heroes around these parts? The police force on their own can't control this region. Somebody needs to protect the people when the force can't. That's my job." Mike said heroicly, staring at a slanted angle upwards as if he was in a film trailer.

"Yeah, thanks. Because we definately don't do any protecting..." Ciaran muttered to himself, holding his head in his left hand. "Ok, you're not really going to tell me much about yourself, are you?"

"Sorry sir, but my secret identity is... well, secret. I'd much prefer it to stay that way."

"Ok... what kind of super powers do you have, then?"

"Well..." Mike's words began to stumble upon being questioned about his 'powers'. "Uh... with the support of the people, I can do anything!"

"...You don't have any powers at all, do you?"

"...No... But you don't need superpowers to protect the public, do you? Just look at people like Batman!"

"Batman's fictional. And he had a shit ton of money. Besides, who is out here to protect? We're pretty much the only people that are alive who aren't 'villains'."

"Well, there's someone to protect, huh?" Mike said, smiling.

"Please. I'm a hardened cop, Alice is an assassin who kills people for a job. We can handle o-"

"Alice? She doesn't simply kill people, soldier. I'm sure she has her reasons for it, but... the thing is, I know there's something she's hiding. A girl like her suddenly turning from a defenseless schoolgirl to a cold killer? There's something not right about that. To tell you the truth, it's the one reason I still hang around her, in the hope I can find out what her motives are."

"I know exactly what you mean. Anyways, we'll have to cut this short, Alice is coming back." Ciaran said, shutting his notebook and facing the door, where Alice walked in. Alice put on her cheery smile and waved.

"Hey. I've got a meeting with somebody later, Ciaran. A lot of money in it."

"Really?" Ciaran said, eager to know how she worked. "Can I tag along?"

"...If you stay out of sight, I suppose so. I don't think they'll want extra visitors. Witnesses. Whatever." Alice said, distracted by the sounds of people walking upstairs. She ran back to the staircases and poked her head through one of the gaps. "Jake! Ashley! Dixon! You're alright!"

She welcomed he group inside, who were damp from the large amounts of rain that had been pouring down outside. Jake and Ashley shook it off, whilst Dixon looked at them with envy, forced to stay damp. He sighed.

"Honestly Alice, _some people_ need to be a little bit more careful." Dixon said, releasing the pokemon from their containers one at a time. His pokemon included a Blastoise, a Typhlosion, a Swampert, an Infernape, and his Serperior Jake and Ashley had seen before. They relaxed instantly and walked off to mind their own business, surpisingly not knocking anything other, bar a cabinet or two.

"Jeez... how many starters do you have, kiddo? How did you get them?" Ciaran asked, staring down at Dixon, worried.

"Ohoho, man, it was hilarious! Those 'professors' - idiots, I call them - all thought I was a rookie to this stuff! Free starters, ho! Hey, I'll introduce you to them: The Blastoise is 'Six Machine'-"

"Six Machine? That's a weird name." Ciaran commented.

"Yeah, but do you have _any _idea how many Viewtiful Joe jokes I can make with him? It's quite the... _blast_. Heheh." He laughed, whilst Alice sighed heavily and Ciaran facepalmed. "Anyways, Typholosion is 'Tyke', Swampert is 'Murdock', Infernape is 'Crimson', and Serperior there is 'Ivy'. Just in case you need their names or something, officer. What are you doing here, anyways?"

"He's with me, Dixon." Alice interjected. Dixon nodded, and walked towards one of the windows.

"Is it alright if I open this for a minute? Some Vane guy said he was going to show me something cool." Dixon said, practically throwing the window up.

"Well, you already have, but ok. I guess." Alice said. Dixon backed away, and motioned to everybody to do the same, even though they were several metres away from it. A small, distant whirr could be heard, and a metal claw on an incredibly durable rope clawed into the ceiling. Motor whirring could still be heard, and in an instant the Lucario Dixon had just met was flying in through the window, forward jumping. He spun on his feet as if he were some kind of ballet dancer, and bowed to his 'audience'.

"Not bad, eh?" Vane grinned towards Alice and the others, his right bionic hand re-attached once again. The others were dumbstruck.

"Wh... but... how did you..." Ciaran stuttered. Alice interrupted.

"What the hell are those? Who the heck are you? And are you going to be fixing that ceiling any time soon?" She snapped at Vane. He broke a bit nervously, as this was not the welcome he was expecting.

"Jeez, calm down, lady. I'll give you your damn answers, just don't snap at me so much. Besides, I'm sure the readers have been waiting the past 2 chapters to learn who I am."

"The... who?" Ciaran asked. He thought it was impossible to be any more confused then he already was. He was wrong.

"Hmph. That's nothing. I can break the fourth wall too, y'know." Alice said arrogantly. She stare out one of the windows blankly. "Hey, you! Yeah, you! We're up here busting our asses while you sit on yours reading about us jumping around? How is THAT fair? When I got my contract to move from my Emerald Nuzlocke to this, I was at least expecting to stay in a comic!"

"What are you even looking a-" Ciaran said, pushing Alice out of the way and staring out the window. "...Oh my god."


	9. Chapter 9: The Mon With No Past

"So," Vane said, leaning back on one of the office chairs. "You want to hear about my past, then? Sh*t, there's not much to tell you about it. Mainly because I don't know a whole lot about it. These arms? Some brand f***ing new technology they brought out to assist pokemon with amputations. As you can see, they can even give mobility I never even had. Hey, do you have any idea what the f*** these spikes even DO? I mean, friggin' fireballs from my arceus damn hands are cool and all, but... Anyways. They finished testing me and my robotic arms, and they just let me go."

"What? Just like that?" Ciaran asked, scribbling on his notepad. He raised his eyes for a second.

"Yup. I'm free. Do whatever the hell you want. Don't get caught. Yadda f***ing Yadda."

"That's strange how they'd just let you go like that. Do you remember anything before that?"

"Yeah, it does seem pretty strange. Maybe they got a more 'suitable' test subject. B****** never even told me what my mental condition was besides calling it 'unstable'. After they let me out, s*** happened."

"You mean you just went around killing people." Ciaran corrected, a lack of effort in his words. Vane scratched his head.

"Yeah... well..."

"You're not even a merc, like me. So why do you go about shooting who ever the hell you please?" Alice snapped, slightly offended. "It's people like you that give us a bad name."

"Hey hotness, that bad name is pretty well deserved in any business where we kill people."

"Don't call me that." Alice had a heavy, imposing tone to her voice.

"Fine, jeez. As for killing people..." Vane held his sentence for a while, and Dixon, Ashley and Jake waited, anticipating the answer. "...I guess it's pretty f***ing fun. HeHa!"

"...fun? You... think... this is FUN?" Alice muttered silently, but everyone could hear it much clearer then anything else. Her voice seemingly echoed through the room, and Vane shriveled in fear slightly. "...I suppose when I tease the poor sod at close range, it's kinda fun... I like doing that."

"Yeah, I think we noticed." Ciaran said, reminding himself of their first meeting. _Not exactly limited to victims, is it?_

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me. Somehow. Ok, it didn't. Whatever, a few years back I did weapons training. And that's why I can operate my hands like a human's. Man, let me tell you, these are so much f***ing better then my old ones. The grappling in 'em is so damn useful for getting out of sticky situations. Or impaling someone. Because I can, and nobody got s*** on me when it comes to fighting."

"Don't get so cocky, Vane." Alice muttered under her breath. Vane laughed slightly.

"You know, you're not brash if you can back it up. You should let me show you my sniper. It's massive." Alice clenched her fists at this.

Vane laughed nervously, and fiddled around with one of his pistols. It folded out into a rifle, which he waved at Alice, who was relieved that he wasn't using an innuendo after all. Ciaran seemed intruiged by the weapon.

"That's some interesting technology you've got there, Vane. I thought that stuff was still in the research phases."

"Eh, probably is. I jacked it from the labs on a 'visit' I made there. By that I mean stole it when nobody was looking. It's f***ing awesome. It can turn into an SMG as well, though I don't use that much. I'm too precise for spray and pray."

"You sure are an arrogant bastard, aren't you?" Ciaran laughed. Vane raised his eye.

"...Wait a second. Somebody, swear again."

"Fuck off." Alice complied, and got to insult somebody at the same time. A win-win scenario for her.

"...WHAT THE F***ING S*** SPRITE? YOU'RE MOTHERF***ING CENSORING ME? WHAT THE HELL? I DON'T SEE YOU GOING AROUND F***ING CENSORING ANY ONE ELSE! WHAT'S THE MATTER? MY MEAN WORDS TOO F***ING ADULT FOR YOUR EARS? YET YOU GO ABOUT WRITING S*** THAT WON'T EVEN GET APPROVED ON THESE FORUMS LATER ON? GOD F***ING DAMN IT SPRITE, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS BULL S***!" Vane exploded verbally, before furiously stomping out the room, kicking a metal cabinet over on the way out. The room fell silent for a bit.

"Who the hell does he think he is? Deadpool?" Dixon mumbled. He rubbed the back of his head a bit, and walked off to check on his pokemon. Ashley rested her head on Jack silently, and Alice just stared at Ciaran.

"Well, now... that was... interesting." Ciaran said, shutting his notebook. "I guess that should be it in terms of questions, then. Unless you have another gang of friends coming along for me to interview, too."

Alice laughed slightly. "No, that's all."

"Well, I guess I'll be off, then. I need to get some rest."

"What? You're not staying?" Alice lowered her head, disappointment in her tone. "You're more then welcome to stay with us. After all, you must get pretty lonely by yourself."

"I 'spose I do. But I have Kat with me, and I just got used to it. She's been everything to me, ever since I got her. Though, if you're gonna let me stay, I might as well. Can... I just ask you a question, Alice?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"You're behind what was one of the most unexplained and important series of murders in the entire region. The entire police department wanted you in for questioning - if you were still alive. I'm a member of them, and by all means I have the authority to arrest you. And you just didn't care. You let me question you without a second thought. Why?"

"Hmm... I don't know. I guess I just trust you. A nice guy like you wouldn't just go and betray everyone like that, would you?"

"Nope. Ciaran's a good kid, Alice. You look after him." Mike said, patting Ciaran's shoulder.

"Thanks Mike, but I'm not a kid. I think we can handle ourselves just fine."

"How did you meet Kat, Ciaran?" Alice asked, dragging the conversation back.

"Couple of years ago, the force were looking into experimenting with different pokemon on the force. My name was drawn out the hat, and everyone laughed at me because I'd get 'the inferior one'. Not so inferior, after all. I showed them. Yeah, I showed them all - shot right up the ranks like a friggin' rocket. Kat? She's been my best friend through life. At times, my only companion. I guess that's why I'm so careful with her - I just can't bare to let her go."

"I see - she means a lot to you. That sure takes me back..."


	10. Chapter 10: Memories of the few

**3 years ago, Mt. Pyre**

Alice and her team were silent with remorse as they slowly drifted towards Mt. Pyre. Nobody said a word, nor did they even look at Alice. She held a standard pokeball in her hand, as the raft progressed across the large body of water. A small collision was all that broke the silence. Kristy nodded at Alice.

"We're... we're here. Let's make this quick, please." She said, hoarsely. No motions were made, as Alice, her head drooped down low, hopped off the raft and dragged her feet through the long grass solemnly. The others did not question her actions. Guile, her electrode, exchanged a serious glance with Sera, her beautifly. The group proceeded silently after her. Alice took one last glance at the outside world, trying to hide any signs of emotion, before stepping into the darkness.

The tears of mourning were all that filled the ambient atmosphere that was contained inside Mt. Pyre. Some of the visitors clutched flowers, others sat peacefully by tombstones. Ghost pokemon could be seen every few minutes, and Alice lazily tossed a ball and caught one. She didn't name it, instead just sending it to the box. Her pokemon began to look for the location they were briefed on looking for, but Alice raised her left hand and pointed to an exit.

"Out there. It's too noisy in here..." Was all she said, her head still facing the floor. Part of her hair was now obscuring her vision in front of her face, but she barely noticed. She just focused on the old, rusty pokeball in her hand. They re-emerged into the sunlight. Or rather, what little they could see due to the dense fog. They carefully crawled through the grass, avoiding the disturbance of any vulpix they saw for now. They had a more important objective to do.

Eventually, they approached a clearing against a wall. Alice snapped her fingers lightly, and her hariyama brought forward a stone structure he had been carrying for a while now. He gently lowered it to the wall. Alice was in the way, so nobody could see what the tombstone was saying. Alice motioned to them.

"...Give me a few minutes. This is something I need to do... myself." She muttered, as the rest of them pre-emptively backed away, and entered the mountain interior. Alice walked away for a second, back to the stairs, and brought back a shovel. Although it took a while, the grave had finally been dug. She closed her eyes, and raised her pokeball.

"I'm... I'm so sorry it had to end this way... If only I could have gone back, changed what I said... perhaps this would never have happened. I just can't rid the fact from my mind that everything could have gone so differently. You'd still be here, everything would be ok, we'd still be cracking jokes. I'll admit it. I loved you. You were all I had when we were in the real world, the only thing that stopped me being alone." Alice whispered emotionally, tears beginning to streak down her face. "...I'm so sorry, Travis. I-I-I-I'm so... sorry..."

She pressed the release button on her pokeball facing the grave. The body of a sceptile emerged, its cold expression evoking shock. A large hole bore through it's chest. Alice could no longer bear to stare at it any more. She simply began to kick the dirt back into the grave, and when that was done, fell to her knees and openly wept.

"It was my fault, Travis..."

**R.I.P. TRAVIS ONIJI**

**"The best friend anyone could have asked for."**

**1994 - 2012**

"It was all my fault..." Alice's crying drowned out any other noise. But then, she heard it - a faint whimper. She jerked her head up and stared to the left, along the cliff face. She could see a small vulpix, limping along the floor, barely able to stand up. However, it was on the other end of the patch of grass, and team Aqua members stood next to it, laughing. One kicked it, sending it flying. Alice gulped. _Be strong, Alice. It's what Travis would have done. Nobody else is going to die by your hand. No. More. Sacrifices._

She brought herself up to her feet. Her fists were clenched with rage. _How DARE they. This is a resting place for the dead. NOT a slaughter house! _She thought to herself angrily. She began to walk. And then jog. And then sprint. Her momentum increased with each stride, as she brought her right hand up above her shoulder. The world became silent, as her punch went in slow motion, yet the world did not. A loud crack could be heard, as the aqua goon was lifted off his feet. He returned to the ground with a loud thud, sliding towards the edge of the mountain. Alice grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt, and picked him up.

"Ack! W-what do you want with me? L-leave me alone! I-I don't wanna die!" The man said desperately. He had encountered Alice before, and barely recognised her due to the immense rage she was exhibiting.

"Sure. I'll let you live. On one condition." Alice whispered coldly. "You go and tell those sons of bitches over there, that nothing, and I mean NOTHING, is going to stop me from destroying anything that lies in my path. You either get the hell out of my way. Or I make hell out of YOU." Alice threw them back to the floor behind her, past the injured vulpix, and watched seriously as he stumbled onto his feet, and dashed off to warn the others. Within minutes, no trace of the Aqua members was left.

"H-hey, miss... thank... thank you..." The small vulpix said faintly, unable to pick itself up off the floor. Alice crouched down to it, and cradled the vixen in her arms.

"It's not a problem. Nothing will stop me from protecting the innocent. My name's Alice." Alice said, smiling at the creature. "Do you want to come with me? I'll keep you safe from now on."

"Y-yes, yes please, Alice."

"Do you have a name? Can you tell me your name?"

"Ashley... my name is Ashley."

"It's ok, Ashley. You don't need to be nervous. You're safe now. I'm not going to let anything happen to you. I promise. Come on, I'll take you to the others." Alice began to back track slowly. _You're not weak any more, Alice. You're not the little schoolgirl you were when Travis was here. Nothing is going to stop me from protecting the innocent and avenging the fallen. No matter where that takes me. Frosty. Jay. The Wizard. You've all done unspeakable things in the pursuit of 'the greater good'. And it stops. Now. And I'm going to kill you, all of you. Painfully._

**Present Day**

Ciaran masked his mouth with his fingers, resting his head on them. He stared at Alice and Ashley, speechless. Jake had gone to talk to the other pokemon.

"I... I see... so in a sense, you lost the most important thing in your life - and gained another." Ciaran muttered quietly to himself. He checked his watch. "Ah, crap, I should probably go check on Kat. I haven't seen her in a while. See ya in a few minutes, girls."

Ashley rubbed her head against Alice's leg. "I'm... still grateful for that day, Alice. If you hadn't have been there to help me, then they-"

"We need to stop living on the 'what ifs', Ashley. We need to focus on the here and now. I was dwelling on them for years, now. I don't want to any more. Travis wouldn't have wanted me to."

"Okay, Alice." Ashley said, still saddened by the recounting of Alice's farewell to Travis. Jack walked in, and her face brightened up. "Jack! You're back!"

"Yeah, calm down, I was only gone a few minutes." Jake said, as Ashley ran over to greet him. Their greeting was interrupted by a thud on the door Jack had just shut. They span around to face it. The door burst open, as Ciaran stumbled out of the room he had just locked to keep Kat in at the end of the corridor.

"..." His face was white in shock, unable to speak. Ciaran fell to the floor heavily, causing Alice to jump up.

"Ciaran? CIARAN!" Alice yelled, running and shaking Ciaran furiously. He barely had the energy to speak.

"It's... it's Kat... she..."

"Ciaran! Answer me! Ashley, look after Ciaran! Jack, get Dixon and Vane!" Alice said. They immeadiately began their work, and she began to sprint down the hall. She called out into the room, loading her pistol. "KAT! I know you're in there! What did you do to Ciaran?" She waited a few seconds. No response. She burst into the room, her handgun at the ready. She turned on the lights of the darkened room, and stood still. Nothing shifted. She slowly crept forwards in the office, and began to notice a small trail of blood.

_Is this Ciaran's blood?_ Alice pondered to herself. She gulped, and peered over the office desk. And it was then she saw it. No, not Ciaran's blood. Kat's. She lied there, her face as if she had been screaming, in a huge pool of blood. Alice recoiled instantly from such a violent scene. "Wha? But... but HOW?" Alice yelled out. Ciaran had struggled his way into the room, as he had only been unconscious for a few seconds. His face was swelled in rage.

"Who." He muttered. He raised his head. "WHO. KILLED. KAT?"

Alice's blood ran icy and thing. She shook her head, mouthing the words 'I don't know' to him. Ciaran fell on one knee, his arm supporting him.

"!"

**3 Years Ago, Mt. Pyre**

It was cold at the mountain top, and Travis' tombstone lay quiet. A taillow rested on top of it, beginning to drift to sleep. A small, low frequency rumble could be heard underneath it. The ground began to shake, at first lightly, then violently. A small aura began to emit from the ground, before the ground seemingly exploded under great force from below, knocking the taillow at of the sky as it tried to fly away. A hulking shadowy figure burst out from the grave, landing in front of it. It was the body of Travis. But a red aura glowed around it, indescribable hatred and rage being emitted.

"I'M COMING FOR YOU... GIRL."


	11. Chapter 11: Remorse

The trench coat wearing man smiled sinistarily, viewing the monitors with anticipation. At last, he had found everything he had been looking for, all in one place. A group of survivors, of different shapes and backgrounds, all stood crowded in a room, their heads lowered.

"Soon… they will be lowering their heads to me." The evil man said, standing up from his chair, and briskly walking to the window. "Alice… you're no ordinary mercenary, are you? You're a born survivor, one who cannot fall to mere mortals. In fact, it is my firmest belief you are not even from this world, and yet you do not use this potential. You're an untapped beast, gnawing at the cages. And all you need is something to set you free, something to bring everything I need right to me."

He towered over the desk in the middle of the room, where many sheets of paper had neatly been organised. "All you need… is a little push."

He laughed to himself quietly, and returned to his seat. He observed the monitors, surveying every movement they made. And on the other end of that screen, everything in those survivors lives were beginning to change. Events that would flip their – and the – entire world upside down would unfold.

"Ladies and gentlemen… this is where everything starts."

**Meanwhile…**

Nobody moved. Nobody looked at each other. Nobody spoke. They stood in front of a stone plaque, which had been hammered into the floor.

**Kat**

**2007-11**

"**Man's true best friend"**

For the first time in many years, tears streamed down Ciaran's face. He was an emotional wreck, his tears being the only noise to fill the dark and grim silence of the room.

"I-I… I just c-can't believe she's gone…" He wept, trying to rub the tears from his eyes. Most people would have found it weird for such a cheerful, bright detective to be sad, and yet nothing but sympathy was given.

"Oh man… who could have done this?" Vane mumbled, scratching the back of his head. "That door was locked. It's another of your favourite 'Locked Room Murder' cases, I guess."

Vane's humour brought a slight smile to Ciaran's face, but it didn't last long. Ashley began to walk out.

"I'm… I'm sorry, I can't take this anymore…" Ashley muttered sadly, on the verge of crying too.

"It's ok, Ashley. Everyone's been hit hard by this. Let's just get some rest." Jack said calmly, following her out. The others begin to disperse, Mike patting Ciaran on the shoulder as he left.

"Sorry for your loss, soldier. If there's anything I can do to help you find out who did this, let me know."

"Thanks, Mike…" Ciaran sighed. He held his head in his right hand, and slumped down on a chair. Alice crouched down next to him, placing her head on his shoulder.

"You okay, Ciaran?" She asked comfortably. Ciaran looked down.

"No, not really… It… I just... It's not possible. How could this have happened so quickly?"

"I'm sorry, Ciaran. I guess getting you to stay here was a bad idea after all…"

"No, don't say that, Alice. You couldn't have known."

"Well," Alice said, facing her head up to his. "If you want, I can stay with you overnight. Make sure you're okay."

"Thank you, Alice." Ciaran whispered, as Alice turned to leave the room. He slumped and mulled over the events that occurred, tears rolling down his face once more.

**Later that night…**

Ciaran was the only one left awake in the entire building. He was lying on the floor under a blanket, with Alice asleep whilst facing him. He checked his watch. 2:15 AM. He grunted slightly, and sat up, still wearing his detective clothes from yesterday. Taking care not to wake Alice up, he slowly ventured to one of the office windows, and stared out into the moonlight. He took the moment to search his thoughts.

_I guess this is it, huh. Kat's dead. I've lost everything now. I'm sorry for all of this, Kat. I didn't want it to end this way. Nobody did. But what is there left for me now? I can't pursue this truth on my own. I know there's something big going on out there. Even before everything went to hell, we knew of it. You and me: We were a team. But I guess there is nothing left to lose for those who have lost everything, huh? And you were everything to me. I'm gonna put an end to this, Kat. I'm going to find out what's going on, if it's the last thing I do. Unfortunately, it probably will be._

"…Ciaran?" Alice called out, breaking his line of thought. He spun around to face her. She had wrapped the blanket around herself, and leant up to stare at him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Alice. I've just been thinking about Kat's death. Before all of this happened, we had a tip that something big was going down. But I couldn't report it to the force. I'd have been ridiculed. Instead we began to trace the leads ourselves. But when the apocalypse struck, we lost all of our leads. When I found evidence of human contact, Alice… I thought 'this is it! This could be our chance to get back in the game!'… looks like all I did was get Kat killed, in the end. But I've made my mind up about what I'm going to do, Alice."

Alice stood up, and calmly walked towards Ciaran, looking hopeful. "What is it, Ciaran?"

"I'm going to put an end to this, Alice. I'm going to find who killed Kat, and then I'm going to try and find out just what is going on. But I can't do it alone. It'll be dangerous. Alice… I hate to say it, but I think you guys could be the only ones capable of helping me. Even Vane. What do you say?"

Alice stared down for a second to think, before facing Ciaran again. He was slightly taller then her, her head at neck level. She wrapped her arms around Ciaran carefully, squeezing his chest lightly. "Of course, Ciaran. We'll do this together. Maybe, just maybe… I can tie up my loose ends, too. I have a lot of questions, and no answers. But my only question to you is this: How are we going to do it?"

"With whatever we find, Alice. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to investigate Kat's body. Where did you put it?"

"I haven't buried it yet. I've kept her in a cardboard box for burial where we found her."

"Thanks, Alice." Ciaran said. He tried to smile lightly, and walked back to where he had been sleeping. He pulled part of the cover over himself, and shut his eyes. "Good night, Alice."

Alice lied down next to him, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Just… we need to be careful, Ciaran. We could be putting our hands in a hornet's nest here. Who knows what we might find…"


	12. Chapter 12: Confrontation at the Hideout

Alice drew deep breaths. She glanced over her shoulder behind her. Past her pokemon she had brought, the rock bridge had collapsed into the lava below. Everyone was panting from running so much: Ashley, Zeph her Ludicolo, Lady her Serviper, Kristy her Absol, and the other trainer who was helping her, Matthew. The only one not tired was Sera, because she's a beautifly and she can fly. Matt raised his hand off his knees which he had bent over for a second.

"Ok... What... the... hell... was... that..." He said between breaths, staring up at Alice.

"The whole freaking bridge started collapsing on us. That couldn't have been an accident." Zeph said exasperatedly, sitting down next to Lady. "This shit... was not in my plans."

"Yeah, well none of this was, Zeph." Alice muttered. "We didn't plan on getting sucked into this game, did we? Now come on. Jay's just a bit further ahead. Let's kick his ass."

"You've changed, Alice. I can't tell if it's for the better or not." Sera pointed out, expressing concern.

"I don't care if I've changed. All that matters is my mission." Alice loaded a pistol, and put it in its holster near her pocket. She put her left hand up, and tapped her glove she was wearing over it. She had changed her outfit since the events at Mt. Pyre: She was wearing a one-piece black suit with wire designs running over it, covered by a black tank top and trousers. The suit glowed to life.

"Where... the hell did you get that, exactly?" Matt asked, confused at the abnormality of Alice's clothes.

"What Devon doesn't know isn't going to hurt them. Or rather, what isn't there." Kristy whispered contently. She was always the one with the knack for stealth, even if she was contrasting white with black. She glanced at Ashley briefly, who had been trained and evolved since Mt. Pyre. "You all right there, new girl?"

"Um... yeah. I'm fine." She replied, her eyes darting around. "Do we... really have to _kill_ these people, Alice?"

"It's kill or be killed now, Ashley. No time for mercy. And for christ's sake Matt, you need to shape up." Alice replied coldly, staring at the still exhausted Matt.

"Yeah yeah, stop going on about it. I'm a coder, not a fighter. Man, just what kind of stunt is Jay trying to pull, anyways?"

"Who knows. Who cares." Alice walked forwards slowly through the cavern towards a flight of stairs.

"Ok, really? Why the hell did he need to go to the effort of making STAIRS?" Kristy asked rhetorically, slightly annoyed by the attention to detail the cave had. The stairs themselves were pointless, as they still showed signs of naturality, and the cavens around then made them more out of place with how ragged they were. They followed the flight of stairs, until something hit them. Or rather, Zeph walked into a glass wall on top of a small break in the stairs. He stumbled back, barely stopped by the combined force of Matt and Alice.

"The hell?" Zeph mumbled, rubbing his forehead slightly. Ashley had just barely caught up with them, as she was having trouble climbing up the stairs. She didn't complain, but rather kept quiet, showing signs of discomfort.

"Hello, Alice. And Matt." A voice spoke from a conceled loudspeaker. It was quiet, calm, and reasonable. Almost soothing of anger.

"JAY!" Alice yelled at the voice. "You have a LOT to answer for, you bastard! Why the hell have you killed all these peo-"

"Listen to me, Alice. I am NOT a murderer. Not intentionally. And I don't wish to start tonight. I'm going to give you a choice, Alice. Leave me, and this cavern alone, and spare yourself now. But if you do not do so, I will have no choice but to defend myself. I'm sorry it ever had to come to this Alice. But this is your choice, and your ultimatum." The voice stopped before anybody could respond, and the glass barrier was removed. The group faced each other.

"Well?" Matt asked Alice. "What're we gonna do? He says he's not a killer."

"He SAYS. That man is evil. He's a bastard, a liar, a deceiver. Killing him will be a favour to both worlds." Alice said, drawing her gun. "We're moving ahead."

"M-must we..." Ashley whispered quietly, so that nobody would hear her. The group advanced up the steps, into a larger cavern enclosure. It was a large sphere area, divided by a cliff edge, lined with technical equipment, and a whole load of lava. But what was surprising was the lack of a crucial element of the game: Groudon. He was not there. "Are we... too late?"

"No, You're never too late. Ashley." A man spoke. He was very slender and tall, with a sharp red suit, white tie, and black shirt. He wore a pair of custom black shades, and his hair style was rather comical: A large yellow spike with what seemed to be a thunderbolt zig-zag at the top. But nothing about his voice was comical, for he was Jay.

"How... how do you know my name?" Ashley responded, slightly spooked.

"I know a lot more then you think, Ashley."

"You... have a lot to answer for, Jay." Alice spitted, moving to the front of the group.

"Resigned to your fate, I see. I thought as much, Alice." Jay muttered. "We could have worked together, you know."

"What kind of bullshit have you been spewing, Jay? What are you trying to achieve by killing all of our friends?"

"No! They are not our friends, Alice! They have been changed by this game. They only seek their own survival. Take Frosty, for example. He didn't actually give a crap about you, you know. He just wanted to live so he could live his pathetic meaningless life!"

"How... HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT ABOUT HIM! Frosty was a good man, Jay! He was misunderstood, and you killed him!"

"Is that not the same thing you are going to do here, Alice? OPEN YOUR EYES! I'm trying to save lives here!"

"Saving lives? What the hell are you talking about?"

"All the people I've accidentally killed are acceptable losses, Alice. You have no idea how important it is to the world that I survive this game."

"You fucking hypocrite! You only care about yourself, too!" Alice yelled, advancing towards Jay. He quickly brandished his revolver and pointed it at Alice's chest. She drew her pistol and aimed for his head.

"Stay back, Alice! I'm warning you! Through their deaths, I can save lives! I CAN SAVE EVERYONE!"

"With a nuclear bomb? Matt told us the plan, Jay! You're going to nuke the Wizard's dimension and doom everybody in this game!" Jay began to sweat nervously. He swung his gun to Matt, whose hands shot up.

"Well maybe I should start with you, traitor!" Jay yelled angrily. Ashley pushed her way back through Alice.

"How... how do you know who I am?" She asks loudly. Her voice starts to echo.

"..."

"...It's easy to kill hundreds of faceless nobodies, isn't it?" Ashley had tears beginning to streak down her face. "But somebody you love... that's different, Isn't it?"

"What are you talking about, Ashley? Wait... where's Travis?" Jay muttered. He lowered his gun in horror at the realisation. "What... no... damn it, what am I doing? If Travis is gone too, that means that..."

Alice dropped her gun too. "Means what?"

"...It's the wizard, Alice. He knows what I'm trying to do. That's why he possessed Travis. I tried to stop him, but..."

"Jay, listen to yourself! You're not making any fucking sense! Explain yourself!"

"It doesn't matter, Alice. I'm as good as dead, now. There's nothing more I can do, because he'll just kill me too... I'm sorry, Alice. I failed everyone. I couldn't even avoid killing people..." He looked down. His revolver dropped to the floor, and he took something out of his pocket. A golden pocket watch, engraved with a lightening symbol. He tossed it lightly to Alice. "Take this, Alice. It's of no use to me now."

"The heck is this?"

"You'll figure it out soon enough. I guess all I can do now is just wait for the inevitable..."

"What? What is that?"

"Listen to me, Alice. I don't have much time before the Wizard will realise I've lost and comes to take my soul. But this conversation was not a failure. I've stopped you from being the one thing you set out to stop: A heartless killer. Don't fall into it again, Alice. Please. You have your whole life ahead of you, and mine is coming to an end now."

"I'm not following you, Jay."

"I didn't think you would. Not immediately, anyways. But I have one last thing to say to you: Remember. Remember all of this. Remember this game. Remember me. You're the only one that can save anyone now, Alice. I leave the rest in your hands." Jay turned around to face the lava once more.

"I... have had enough... OF YOUR BULLSHIT, JAY!" Matt suddenly yelled, grabbing Alice's gun from under her feet, and aiming at Jay. He shot him in the back of his head, and shot several more times, some missing, some hitting his back, one hitting his neck. Jay spun around dramatically, his face devoid of any expression. His legs slowly began to crumple, as his body fell back, tumbling off of the cliff.

"NO! JAAAAYYYY!" Alice yelled out. Everything went silent, all that could be heard was the sound of Jay's corpse impacting with the lava.


End file.
